Sean Elliott nails special sauce that makes Wembanyama so dangerous

Sean Elliott just compared Victor Wembanyama's mentality to the late, great Kobe "Bean" Bryant in the most respectful way possible. He was also incredibly accurate with his assertion, and packaging this type of competitor in an extraterrestrial's body is going to lead to some exciting basketball for Spurs fans for a long time.

Wembanyama has been consistent with his words and actions since before he entered the NBA. He wants to be great, and he doesn't mind rubbing guys the wrong way on his journey to the top. That may sound callous, but it's the right mentality if he wants to achieve such a lofty goal.

All-time greats aren't forged through friendships on the basketball court. They're born of the destruction left in their wake, and Vic is a wrecking ball.

Wembanyama is the San Antonio Spurs' rising tide

Fans knew what this organization stumbled upon in his very first appearance in a silver and black uniform. The Spurs lost a fairly close game to the Dallas Mavericks back when Luka Doncic still called Texas his home. Wembanyama didn't make it easy for his newly acquired rivals, though.

After a rough start, Vic finished the night with 15 points on 6-9 from the field, but the story of the game was when those buckets came. Wembanyama went 4-5 in the fourth quarter, scoring 10 of his points in the final period.

Doncic and Kyrie Irving wouldn't let the new kid on the block show them up, each dropping 10 points of their own in the final 12 minutes of the contest, but the foundation of the future had begun being laid in San Antonio. Those are two of the most dynamic offensive players in the league, and in his first NBA action, Vic didn't back down.

He wanted and expected to win that game and every game after. Everything was only going to go up from there. With a team so young and inexperienced, he knew why they were losing, but he never accepted or went into a game believing they had no shot. That's the winning mentality that has propelled San Antonio to where they are now.

Vic is a force-multiplier in the best way for the Spurs

Kobe Bryant is the perfect comparison for the way the towering Frenchman goes about his business. Wemby is a trash-talker and a big-game performer. If you poke him, he will detonate on you and your entire team, so your best bet is to just play ball. But he knows he can't do it by himself, and like the Mamba, the Alien demands his teammates join him on his journey.

Their styles in that department do differ, though—Kobe was known for being extremely abrasive to guys he shared the floor with. That's not really Wemby's style. He's going to put his arm around his fellow Spurs, but that doesn't mean he's soft on them.

Defense has been key to San Antonio's dominance. Before the campaign kicked off, Vic made it clear that performing on that side of the floor was nonnegotiable. He then went out and led by example, continuing his reign as the league's best defender by several miles, and his teammates followed in lockstep behind their 7'5" leader.

Everyone has elevated their game on both sides of the court, but that all started with Wembanyama's quest for excellence. Like the Black Mamba, that journey doesn't involve making friends along the way. He's more interested in devastating you on his way to the top. And that's alright with Spurs Nation.